Building a Better World Through Business

2018 Schedule of Events

Keynote: Mr. Casey Gerald on "Purpose Is the New Bottom Line"

Tuesday, March 20
7:30 p.m.
McManus Theater
Reception to follow

Mr. Casey Gerald, co-founder and former CEO of MBAs Across America (MBAx) and the closing speaker at TED2016, will deliver the keynote address for Building a Better World Through Business 2018. MBAx began with four friends and a simple question: what if we used our education not just to make a buck, but to make a difference? That question led Gerald and his three Harvard Business School classmates to trade their classrooms and cubicles for an RV, traveling 8,000 miles across America in the summer of 2013 to work hand-in-hand with purpose-driven entrepreneurs. That first journey was just the beginning. Over three summers, 68 students from the nation’s top business schools traveled over 50,000 miles into 41 cities and towns—from Detroit and New Orleans to rural Montana and Appalachia—working with 73 entrepreneurs and small business owners who were not only creating jobs, but also solving some of the biggest challenges facing their communities.

This work made MBAx one of the most sought-after experiences for top graduate students and small business owners across the country. The program was featured in The New York Times, Financial Times, NPR, Forbes, and elsewhere. It was also the basis of the HLN docu-series Growing America.

His talk “The Gospel of Doubt” is considered one of the all-time best TED talks. He is currently writing his first book, There Will Be No Miracles Here, to be published by Riverhead Books. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

Loyola, Business, and Community Partners: Coming Together to Build a Better Baltimore

This event will feature a panel of speakers who will highlight the important relationship between business and community partners in driving Baltimore's growth and development. John Brothers, president of the T. Rowe Price Foundation and Program for Charitable Giving, will moderate the panel discussion. Panelists include:

Collaborative relationships between stakeholders—businesses, nonprofits, entrepreneurs, government, institutions, community partners and citizens—can drive social impact and contribute to economic development. This panel will explore ways to strengthen strategic connections and establish new partnerships, discuss existing resources for stakeholders and identify outstanding needs of community partners.

Based on survey responses from community partners, Loyola University Maryland’s Sellinger School for Business and Management will create an e-resource including templates, tips, and information which will be made available for participants.

This event is free of charge and open to the Baltimore community, students, alumni, faculty and staff. Registration is required. This event will be particularly beneficial to individuals in the Baltimore community who have recently started a small business or who are thinking of starting one, as well as businesses looking to learn about potential resources and partnerships to further expand their business. For more information, email BBWTB@loyola.edu.

A Poster and Pitch Competition - Rising to the Challenge: Ideas to Help Build a Better Baltimore

Thursday, March 22
6 – 8 p.m.
McGuire Hall West

The “Rising to the Challenge: Ideas to Help Build a Better Baltimore” poster and pitch competition will feature undergraduate and graduate students from any of Loyola's disciplines or majors proposing innovative ideas and sustainable solutions that respond to challenges the Baltimore community currently faces.

Student proposals will respond to the challenge question: How might Loyola students apply their talents and education to create initiatives, ventures or products designed to benefit and contribute to Baltimore's growth?

The goal of this event is to highlight how innovative thinking can lead to an idea that transforms communities and strengthens societies.

Students will receive training and guidance from faculty and professionals as to how to come up with an idea, how to prepare a poster that captures an idea and proposed solution, and how to successfully pitch/communicate your idea. The event includes poster presentations which will be rated by leaders and entrepreneurs in the Baltimore community who will serve as judges for the event. The top five teams to be chosen by judges then compete in pitch phase of competition; prize money will be awarded to the top three finishing teams in the pitch round. Students can enter the competition individually or form teams (up to four students on a team).

A reception for students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the Baltimore community will take place during the competition. This event is free of charge, but registration is required. For more information, including how to submit a proposal for the pitch competition as a undergraduate or graduate student, please visit the Pitch Competition Entry Process webpage.